Nonstop flight route between Alconbury, England, United Kingdom and Kangnung (Gangneung), South Korea:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF AlconburyUSAAF Station 102 (AYH), Alconbury, England, United Kingdom and Gangneung Airbase (KAG), Kangnung (Gangneung), South Korea would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,502 miles (or 8,855 kilometers).

A Great Circle is the shortest distance between 2 points on a sphere. Because most world maps are flat (but the Earth is round), the route of the shortest distance between 2 points on the Earth will often appear curved when viewed on a flat map, especially for long distances. If you were to simply draw a straight line on a flat map and measure a very long distance, it would likely be much further than if you were to lay a string between those two points on a globe. Because of the large distance between RAF AlconburyUSAAF Station 102 and Gangneung Airbase, the route shown on this map most likely appears curved because of this reason.

Try it at home! Get a globe and tightly lay a string between RAF AlconburyUSAAF Station 102 and Gangneung Airbase. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about RAF AlconburyUSAAF Station 102 (AYH):

• Opened in 1938, it is currently a non-flying facility under the control of the United States Air Force.
• In the spring of 1938, the Air Ministry acquired about 150 acres of open meadowland at Alconbury Hill, Huntingdonshire, expressly for use as a satellite airfield.
• The technical site on the north-west side was expanded where a single T2 hangar was also erected.
• The furthest airport from RAF AlconburyUSAAF Station 102 (AYH) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,821 miles (19,024 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to RAF AlconburyUSAAF Station 102 (AYH) is Cambridge International Airport (CBG), which is located 20 miles (32 kilometers) ESE of AYH.
• This was the time of the Blitz, when many parts of Britain were being subjected to an almost nightly series of heavy air raids.
• The first American Eighth Air Force unit to take residence at RAF Alconbury was the 93d Bombardment Group, known as the "Travelling Circus" from Fort Myers AAF, Florida on 7 September 1942.
• In 1937, Royal Air Force Bomber Command was drawing up plans for dispersal of their aircraft in the event of air raids on its stations.

Facts about Gangneung Airbase (KAG):

• Because of Gangneung Airbase's relatively low elevation of 35 feet, planes can take off or land at Gangneung Airbase at a lower air speed than at airports located at a higher elevation. This is because the air density is higher closer to sea level than it would otherwise be at higher elevations.
• During the Korean War, the USAF designated the base as K-18.
• In addition to being known as "Gangneung Airbase", another name for KAG is "강릉공항".
• The closest airport to Gangneung Airbase (KAG) is Sokcho Airport (SHO), which is located 33 miles (53 kilometers) NW of KAG.
• Gangneung Airbase (KAG) currently has only 1 runway.
• In 1969, Korean Air Lines YS-11 flying from Gangneung Airbase to Gimpo International Airport in Seoul was hijacked by a North Korean agent and forced to land in the North.
• The furthest airport from Gangneung Airbase (KAG) is Capitán de Corbeta Carlos A. Curbelo International Airport (PDP), which is nearly antipodal to Gangneung Airbase (meaning Gangneung Airbase is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Capitán de Corbeta Carlos A. Curbelo International Airport), and is located 12,136 miles (19,531 kilometers) away in Maldonado/Punta del Este, Maldonado, Uruguay.